In 2012, the Virginia Department of Aviation asked the Performance Management Group (PMG) in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University to produce a report, Virginia Aviation & Space Workforce Analysis and Strategy Development. The report offered nine high-level strategy recommendations.

Building on these recommendations and other recent analyses, the Virginia Tech Office of Economic Development was engaged to revisit and refine the earlier recommendations in order to develop an implementation plan for strengthening the aviation and space workforce and career development in the Commonwealth.